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Ruby Pipeline to open in July, send gas west

The Ruby Pipeline, scheduled to go online in March, is set to begin carrying natural gas from the Rocky Mountains west to Oregon in July, officials said.

No date has been set for the opening of the 675-mile, 42-inch, natural-gas-transmission pipeline, which is to carry as many as 1.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day.

At least a portion of that will come from the Piceance Basin as Bill Barrett Corp. has a contract to supply 50,000 cubic feet per day, said David Ludlam of the West Slope Colorado Oil and Gas Association.

“We already have long-term contracts in place for gas that we will transport via Ruby,” said Richard Wheatley of El Paso Corp., the company that owns the pipeline.

The natural gas that will be carried to western markets through the Ruby Pipeline will come from Rocky Mountain basins, but the precise source at any given time will depend on where shippers and customers are producing or contracting for gas, Wheatley said.

The economic importance of the pipeline to western Colorado is significant, Ludlam said.

In addition to Barrett’s direct contract, the pipeline will free up capacity for Piceance Basin suppliers, Ludlam said.

“As local operators continue to unlock new discoveries of West Slope natural gas, the Ruby’s connection to critical West Coast energy markets will ensure the Rockies remain a reliable region for capital investment,” Ludlam said.